I've completed the demo yesterday and I'll now describe everything the passed through my mind while I as playing.

First of all, when I saw that a Loom sequel was being made, I thought: "Sequel"? There can be no sequel for Loom. There can be no game like Loom. Loom is unique. This game will suck. But I will try it before saying anything, so let's see. And then I started playing, and that copy protection screen went on, and I thought: You got to be kidding, this guy will really copy every detail from Loom, including the copy protection system? I see where this is going... I was a little mad and I clicked randomly, not wanting to play this game anyway. Then it started anyway, and I found I got a reward named "Guesser". I laughed, and paid little attention to the intro. It was good, very good, but also somehow too long and complex. And I was still thinking that was too much like Loom, and "I doubt this guy can match Brian Moriarty style". I was ready to see holes and gaps in the story, but then it look very well polished. I was surprised. I played a little while, experimenting with the interface, and I was very pleased with it. Very good work. The graphics are impressive. I saved and quit to play another day. Thought about it during that day, and I thought: I have to say I'm very impressed. This game could really be very good. But still I have to say that you can't make a second Loom. To be really great, you have to make a new game, not an imitation. You can't remake or copy a classic, anyway.

The next day I was anxious to continue playing, and when I saw the copy protection screen, I kind of stopped to think. At that time I haven't tried the Rewards section yet. Anyway I didn't even noted the "Guesser" code, cause I was almost sure I wouldn't like the game. So I looked at the screen again, thinking: Is it actually referring to the same Book of Patterns from Loom? I don't believe it! Then I looked around for the old Book of Patterns that came with the game, inserted the code, and I couldn't believe the game was serious about that. I thought it was just a joke! So I noted the code and clicked in the Rewards section, could not believe, but when I entered the code and read the message, I began to understand the idea. Of course! This guy wants to the set the same "spirit" or "feeling" of playing Loom, but he's not making the same game again, he's not imitating, it's a great tribute after all. This guy must really love Loom. And I'm loving this game more and more.

I must confess, however, that I never had enough patience for hard puzzles. I like to see the story unfolds, so I prefer easier puzzles. And most of the puzzles was just right, but the cemetery puzzle really takes some time to figure out, because there are too many combinations, and if you make a mistake you have to start the counting again and it takes a lot of time, and you can't consult the "riddle" so easily. So I think it should be easier for a first puzzle, understand?

After that, I got so hooked on the game I got the coffee achievement. Couldn't wait to see how it goes. I enjoyed the schematic mechanics very much. Everything was very well thought, really. At first I thought that was strange to see a schematic by interacting with a person, not an object. But then I realized the Gauntlets manipulate physical processes, including those that happen in organic matter. Everything fits in. Very well thought indeed.

The only thing I found somehow odd it's why it takes to so long for the character to walk that slope in the dome? Why is that slope there, anyway? Also, the voice acting is fantastic, but the old woman is not sounding very much like a real old woman. I think the voice actress is very talented, but she may be too young to make an old lady's voice. It's a physical limitation, really. Women's vocal cords change dramatically with age. The princess voice is perfect, though. Maybe there's a easy way to fix this, using a software to add a bass effect to the sound, or something like that? Just a thought.

The Spite Reward Scene is hilarious! Really added a fresh kind of humor to the game experience. I laughed out loud. The mole fight was also great. When I finished, I was certainly wanting more. It's very evolving, and very well written. But, again, you just have to remember that you don't have to include every single aspect of Loom in this game, neither you have to be limited to the aspects shown in Loom. That first part really settled the atmosphere. You can make a very original game. I'm counting on it. It was a wonderful experience, an amazing first part. Just keep the good work and you will have a masterpiece. Good luck, and thanks for this.

What can I say... this is one of the best reviews I've received so far. I'm not just talking about the things you say, but how you do that. Getting to know the difference between the first impression and the second one is priceless for me as a game-developer, and was a really pleasant read as well.I hope most of the true Loom fans show your same perseverance and won't stop playing after a potentially bad first impression. And I really appreciate that you caught the reasons behind the Loom references and enjoyed the Rewards.You even took the time to analyse the working process of the Schematics, and perfectly understood how they function.

But what's most heartwarming in all of this is reading how you looked for the old Book of Patterns and used that to input the correct code. This is what I hoped it would happen and though it would never happen. As a matter of fact, you're the first one who did that instead of using the provided digital copy, as far as I know.

On a side notedid you get the point of that "Athropos Judgement" picture? It's got more than it seems, but in case you haven't figured it out, look better!

Once again, the Tombs' Riddle gets bashed (which is fine, it's a fact that it's flawed) and you're also the 2nd one to point out Old Lady's actress sounds too young. Are you talking about her singing voice, her normal voice or both, however?

In the end, thanks for the support and the account of your experience. I'm sure the whole team can be proud of your words.

I'm glad you could make something of what I wrote. Let me stress how much I loved this game. The team should be very proud indeed, it's an amazing work of love. Congratulations to all the team.

As it turned out, that copy protection screen really worked for me, and I believe it could work for others too. The feeling of looking through your old stuff until you find a dusty little booklet full of pencil annotations... That is a priceless experience! Makes you go back in time, think about when you played Loom, a long time ago in my case, and good memories does come back.

About the side note: I really couldn't figured it out yet, but I'll keep looking.

Oh, and the Tomb's Riddle is not bad per se, it's a clever puzzle in fact. I just wish it could be a little easier, but that's just the opinion of someone who doesn't have such a good memory, so I had to click on the riddle tomb a dozen times, and I had to click even more on the other tombs, and sometimes I confused one with the other and had to start all over again, you see? As for the Old Lady's voice, I was referring to her normal voice, specially in the first dialog. The singing doesn't look bad at all. I hope that doesn't upsets the voice actress. Her voice acting is amazing!

Well, the sad thing is I'm between jobs, and being unemployed sucks! On the other hand, I recently played Loom for the first time in over a decade. I was a little rusty, so I looked up an FAQ. The FAQ also made me aware of this project. I downloaded the demo and played it all the way through. I just have to say that you are AWESOME for doing this! The decision to keep it retro is 100% right. I (personally) like that you're keeping it in the spirit of the CD-ROM version because that's the one I grew up with. I may report more critically in the troubleshooting forums, but, overall, this project is BOSS! Keep up the good work!

I agree with those who say the old lady doesn't sound old, and that the tombstone puzzle is too much. But, outside of those things, the game is top-notch!!!!

I'm also a great Lucasfilm/LucasArts (and Loom obviously ) fan from the very beginning, back to the glorious eighties and nineties, when I was a dreamin' child.....

So I'll be brief: you've done an outstanding job!! VERY VERY VERY WELL DONE!!

FORGE is a little jewel, I loved it, I absolutely WANT the complete game, and FOLD so far!!

I just give you a suggestion about 2 keyboard shortcuts that I think could be very useful and could make the game interface even more pleasant:

1. The dot key (.) to cut the dialogues, a standard keyboard shortcut in every Lucas adventure.2. The esc key to turn off the focus from a "clicked" object, so the player who wants to do this, can avoid to click with the mouse on a "neutral" location area, with the annoying side effect to move Rusty away from his spot.

Oh, before I forget: I'm Italian, so I can give you a big hand for the translation if you need/want it!

And last but not least: I absolutely ADORE the Forge Soundtrack!! PLEASE make it downloadable from the site PLEEEEEASE!!

I was very impressed, and have no trouble calling this a sequel to Loom, even though it's just the first chapter. Kind of a slow game, leisurely paced, but that's an alright design choice for a game with strong atmosphere and great environments.

I wish that the tombstone highlighted the five relevant lines - put them in a larger font with a small border or some such, to make it clearer that there's one hint per line. I was also a bit annoyed at having to smash the wine rack instead of reshaping the bottle into an open tube or just decking the guy in the face and grabbing his stuff. It'd have been less rude. Still, adventure game vandalism gets nostalgia points.

I wish that the tombstone highlighted the five relevant lines - put them in a larger font with a small border or some such, to make it clearer that there's one hint per line. I was also a bit annoyed at having to smash the wine rack instead of reshaping the bottle into an open tube or just decking the guy in the face and grabbing his stuff. It'd have been less rude. Still, adventure game vandalism gets nostalgia points.

I wasn't particularly fond of the tombstone puzzle (it felt out of place), as well as the wine rack solution - nothing really seemed to stop Bobbin from doing chaotic things in front of other people in Loom.

All in all, this game was absolutely amazing, and the ending came far too quickly. The multiple ending cutscenes were particularly funny, and I found myself going back to a prior save file just so I could change things for more reactions from the guards. Excellent work with everything that's been going on with this project. I look forward to future updates.

I'm way late to the discussion, but I wanted to say you did an amazing job. I really wish Lucusarts, or I guess Disney now, would pay you to make the other chapters and The Fold. I'd buy it if they put it up on Steam. I also wanted to point out that Loom wasn't a very long game and the amount of content you created could almost count as a full squeal on it's own.

I know you're not planning on finishing the journey, but thanks for going as far as you did. I almost want to ask for your notes, source code, and artwork so I could try to complete the game. The problem is that I know I wouldn't be able to come close to meeting the quality standard you've set.